Part of Amsterdam's Schiphol airport has been closed after a suspected World War II bomb was discovered, a spokeswoman said.

The departure hall serving most European destinations has been evacuated as a precautionary measure.

Delays are now affecting some departures and passengers are advised to check their flights before leaving for the airport.

A bomb disposal team is trying to establish whether the device is live.

The bomb was uncovered by workers digging near Pier C, which connects the main plaza with Departure Hall One, serving most destinations within Europe's 26-country passport-free Schengen zone.

"This will have a big impact. We can park planes somewhere else to some extent but at some point it will lead to cancellations or delays," the spokeswoman said earlier, according to Reuters news agency.

Schiphol was used as a military airfield by Nazi Germany during the 1939-45 war, and was often attacked by allied bombers, Dutch media said.

It is now one of Europe's busiest airports, handling some 48 million passengers every year.

Unexploded bombs dating back to the war are still frequently discovered in Europe.

A 550lb (250kg) American bomb was detonated by a bomb disposal team in the German city of Munich on Tuesday.

A 1.5-tonne mortar bomb probably fired by Nazi forces was also safely removed from the Polish capital, Warsaw.

And still they keep rising to the surface.

Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.

I live in an area where you more or less expect a car marked 'bomb squad' turning up at building sites (only last week they had to evacuate about 4000 people about 2 kilometers away from where I live - and 600 metres from my old flat - because a bomb had been found on a site and had to be defused), but the one in the link was extra scary because in the end they had to explode the bomb right in the centre of Munich, instead of defusing it.

Once it landed at Schiphol it was boarded by armed security forces who discovered the false alarm.

A miscommunication between the pilot and the control tower reportedly triggered the confusion.

"There was never any danger. There was a lack of communication between the pilot and the tower and the airport has activated the security protocol," a spokeswoman for Spanish carrier Vueling told Reuters news agency.

Dutch broadcaster NOS spoke to a passenger who said the situation on board had been "calm".

It was the second drama at the airport on Wednesday.

Earlier, part of Schiphol was closed and flights delayed after a suspected World War II bomb was discovered by workers digging near Pier C, which connects the main plaza with Departure Hall One.

Blimey. It's all happening at Schiphol. You were very lucky you travelled yesterday, mC.

Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.

Bouncy Castle wrote:Do all those poor people have to pay to have new windows, or is there some sort of government payout to cover it?

The city of Munich said they were not going to pay anything since they did the best they could to safe lives.Most insurance policies don't seem to cover destructions caused by war (and a 70 year old bomb exploding counts as such), however one insurance already said that ways might be found.

Well, most people will be happy that it's only the windows. After the explosion they had to wait until experts had checked if their hoses were still save to live in! Imagine owning a house in the centre of one of the most expensive cities in the country (i.e. a house worth millions) and suddenly being homeless!